Pimping out a Sterling Intro Series!

[Matt Power]

Hey all!

I had a wild hair to snag a Stingray Intro and pimp the snot out of it! The thing is...I am elbow-deep in premium basses...2 Cliff Bordwell single cut 4 string neck-thoughs, Shawn May bass, Muckelroy, Fender, etc.. I am wanting a seriously great combat-ready outdoor-use bass...I feel good, but foolish dragging my good basses to crowded stages, etc. Rainstorms at an outdoor gig..you know the drill. So..here we are, wanting something that will play great, sound great, look pimpy, and not break the bank.

The bones are really good...poplar, purpleheart board, PASIVE!!!, narrow nut, 8.2 pounds, and Daphne Blue with a white guard...perfect!

It's going to get these things done to it by Brady Muckelroy:

Fret level and crown
Nut replacement with bone
Hipshot Licensed tuners
Guyker bridge
Ulyate pickup
Full shielding
Pot replacement
Jack replacement
Switch added for 3 way switching
Dunlop Strap Locks
Knobs......of course!

Basically a nod to a passive Lakland 4-76.

The project begins tomorrow...pics to follow!

 

[Doctor Morbius]

Looking forward to seeing the progress!

Will you be doing the work in-house or will you be farming it out?

 

[Bassic_desires]

Best wishes for your project.

What’s the name of the ethical paradox - If you change every piece of wood, metal, rope and linen on a ship, is it still the same ship?

 

[Doctor Morbius]

Ship of Theseus.

 

[shojii]

Bass of Theseus.

 

[Bassic_desires]

That’s the one. Thankyou both

 

[Matt Power]

Best wishes for your project.

What’s the name of the ethical paradox - If you change every piece of wood, metal, rope and linen on a ship, is it still the same ship?

The neck and body is there. That is really all I need. The rest are 100% structural and sonic improvements.

It may not be the same ship, but it'll sure mow over most other ships in the harbor!

 

[mydogfarted]

I'm interested in final pics and sound clips. I bought one because I found it comfortable and it was cheap enough that I'm hoping to learn to mod/work on my own instruments.

 

[beanondabass]

I'm interested in final pics and sound clips. I bought one because I found it comfortable and it was cheap enough that I'm hoping to learn to mod/work on my own instruments.

Good bass to start with the bones are all there. I have a ray4 from about 3 years ago, and I've modded it and changed it so much that all but one control plate screws are stripped. Been passive/active, different pickups different electronics, everything but it always feels great.

 

[Matt Power]

So far...
•Dunlop strap locks
•New MM pickup
•Single/parallel/series switch added
•Full strip of back of neck (man the factory neck finish is ROUGH!), sanded to 1500 and oiled, fret ends filed, fingerboard edges rounded
•New fancy-pants chrome knobs with imbedded lines

It feels like a different bass now...in feel and in tone, and I have only spent 45 bucks on the mods!

Next, I have a proper Sterling bridge coming in, a new set of Hipshot hb7s, and a bone nut in the following weeks. It also got a cool Mono-esque gig bag I brought back from Spain.

 

[Matt Power]

Current state of affairs...getting some Hipshot HB7 tuners on Monday and an EBMM Sterling waterslide.

That parallel/single/series switch is a simple mod that makes a HUGE difference! I swapped out the 2 wire pickup and put in a 29$ to 4 wire/conductor MM pickup and WOOOOO! So many color options to pull out of 1 pickup!
So:
Straplock buttons: $6
Knobs $10
Pickup $29
3 way switch 10$
Strings $16
Elbow grease to file fret ends, round over the fingerboard and do all the other work... FREE

NOT kidding...this goes toe to toe with a MM. For 71 bucks??? You kidding? Frets are perfect....all I gotta do is drop a bone nut on there and the tuners (120 all in).

199 into the bass
71 to get it slamming, or replace it with 191 to eliminate all neck dive

270 bucks got me a KILLER of a bass that plays, sounds, and stands alongside my other basses, all over 3k. No sh*t. Playability is boutique-level and sounds so good in a band situation! Only other thing to add would be an aged/mint guard...or...add a neck pickup and a stacked blend knob! Drop in a Trickfish pre, etc. Lakland it out! The list could go on.

OR:
390 gets me a killer bass with no neck dive. Are the mods worth it? YES!!!!

If you are in a modding mood, I cannot recommend one of these Intro Series Sterlings enough! Great bones, man!!